Chapter 1206: A Deadly Rescue Mission - Magical Conjuration!

Within nothingness, a loud crack resounded.

With that sharp sound, the darkness began gaining colors.

With those colors came light, shapes, and structures — a room taking shape instantly within a node of time.

By the time Lilith took form, the Room of Requirement had already materialized.

Ron and Hermione, who were still not used to such a long distance Apparition, fell to their knees, feeling sick to their stomachs as they choked back nausea.

Lilith, thinner than before because of Apparation while carrying so many people, lunged to wrap herself around Darcie, becoming the hooded, yellow cloak.

After a few moments, Ron and Hermione climbed back to their feet, slowly nodding at the others.

Darcie made two vials Invigoration Potion appear in the Room of Requirement.

Once Ron and Hermione had downed those potions, and began showing signs of feeling good, she gathered them in a half circle around her.

“Honestly,” Darcie said, looking… a touch concerned. “I should have come alone. It’s a rescue mission, not an attack by a strike force; definitely not a suicidal attack force. One person has a much higher chance of not getting caught by patrol. If something went wrong, then one person has a great chance to… drop everything and run. Contrarily, there are six of us, surrounded by nearly a thousand enemies.”

Harry saw the “but” coming from a mile away.

“But…” Darcie said, staring at Harry, “the five of you have these Spells that can push the mission’s success rate much higher. All we have to do is use these Spells carefully and precisely. So… I want you to trust me. Not just trust me. I want you to do it blindly.”

For once, the children smiled.

That was something they already did.

There was no need to even say it out loud.

Darcie — no matter how difficult she had been with the boys over the years — was still one of the most trustworthy people in their circle.

Darcie sighed. “Good. Let’s do it. First, Daphne, summon a creature. Try to focus on stealth.”

Daphne nodded.

Using her Magical Conjuration Spell, she could summon creatures — Pokémon — from another dimension, one at a time, each possessing vastly different abilities.

Daphne had never succeeded in summoning a specific Pokémon on command.

However, over time, she had recognized a pattern.

The summoned creature’s nature was strongly affected by Daphne’s emotions, which were, in turn, affected by the situation around her.

It had happened during the very first summoning, when she had wanted to blast her way through the stone chess pieces.

The Pokémon she had ended up summoning turned out to be Pikachu, its thunderbolts blowing up the stone giants, its iron tail cutting through them like a hot knife through butter.

While fighting against Draco during the trials for the Triwizard Tournament, she had ended up summoning Seviper, which had completely countered Draco’s Acute Perception Spell using its venom and coils.

Then, it had happened in the Chamber of Secrets, where she had summoned Talonflame against the Basilisk, who had saved their lives by destroying the giant snake’s deadly eyes.

If it hadn’t been for Talonflame, the children would have never managed to beat Voldemort and his snake, facing a far worse fate.

Then, a year ago, when Voldemort was about to be reborn from the large cauldron, pressed for time, Daphne had summoned a Pokémon with extreme speed — Ninjask — who used its sharp claws to slash the cauldron to pieces, ruining the ritual.

That had failed to stop Voldemort from returning, though.

Only moments later, against the Dark Lord’s enhanced strength, which the children had been no match for, Daphne had once again summoned a Pokémon that fit the moment.

It had been Wobbuffet, who had successfully bounced Voldemort’s attack right back at him, sending him flying.

Ever since then, with Darcie and Madam Villanelle’s help, Daphne had been practicing working on these… emotions.

It had rarely worked.

It was hard to feel those exact emotions without being in danger.

When the Black Death was spreading across the Hogwarts grounds, though, the danger and her feelings had matched once again.

Right now, the same was happening, even if the silent room felt far calmer than that terrible day a week ago.

Daphne used her Spell and focused completely on the plan Darcie gave them.

They were here to rescue, not to fight.

They needed to be as quiet and hidden as possible.

Still, they needed to be ready for anything, because the prisoners were bound to be heavily guarded.

The Grimoire, surrounded by red and black mist, floated above Daphne’s head.

As she focused her emotions like never before, the mist from the book turned even darker.

In moments, the fog spread across the floor until it was ankle-deep.

There was a low howl.

Someone sounded like they were singing from very far away.

A giggle. A whisper. A sound that seemed just like someone chanting spells.

Then, it stopped.

The Grimoire snapped shut and vanished, sinking back into Daphne’s wand.

Ron, pale and scared, looked around the room. “… What’s going on?”

Harry, Draco, and Hermione felt just as spooked by the strange mist and sounds.

Daphne smiled, as if she had just realized something great.

“I choose you…” she said.

The ankle-deep mist turned purple before pulling together quickly, taking a solid shape.

It was a purple creature, floating a few feet above the floor. It had a round head shaped just like a pointed witch’s hat, with the tips lighter than the rest of its body. It had a small red mouth shaped like a “W”. Below its head, three oval red gems sat along the upper part of its body.

Cloth-like shapes hung down its sides and back, with the front ones looking ragged, making the creature look like it was wearing a tattered cloak.

No matter which angle the children looked from, the Pokémon looked less like a beast and more like a… witch.

The creature floated over to Daphne like a gust of wind as the girl whispered its name.

“… Mismagius.”

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